A Chinese court on Friday sentenced Chinese-Canadian pop star Kris Wu to 13 years in prison on charges including rape.
Beijing’s Chaoyang District Court said Wu was given 11 years and six months for a 2020 rape, and 1 year and 10 months for the “crime of assembling a crowd to engage in sexual promiscuity” in a 2018 event in which he and others allegedly assaulted two women they had gotten drunk.
The court said the three victims in the rape case had also been drunk and were unable to consent.
It said a combined 13-year sentence was agreed on and Wu would be immediately deported after serving his time.
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“According to the facts the nature, circumstances and harmful consequences of the crime, the court made the above judgment,” the court said in an online statement.
A Canadian diplomat was in court to hear the sentencing, it said.
Kris Wu arrives on the red carpet at the iHeartRadio MMVAs in Toronto on Aug. 26, 2018.
Frank Gunn/The Canadian Pres file photo
Wu was also slapped with a fine of 600 million yuan (US$83.7 million) for evading taxes by massively underreporting his earnings from performances, advertisements and other sources of income.
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The June trial of the 32-year-old former member of the South Korean group EXO was closed to the public to protect the victims’ privacy.
Wu has been detained since August 2021 while police conducted an investigation in response to comments online that he “repeatedly lured young women” to have sex, according to a police statement at that time.
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That year, a teenager accused him of having sex with her while she was drunk. Wu, known in Chinese as Wu Yifan, denied the accusation.
The teenager then said seven other women contacted her to say Wu seduced them with promises of jobs and other opportunities. She said some were under 18.
Rape is punishable by three to 10 years in prison, although exceptional cases can result in harsher sentences up to death. The second charge Wu faced is punishable by up to five years in prison.
Wu grew up in Guangzhou in China and in Vancouver, British Columbia.
“The game in Wales needs the biggest reform in its history if there are not to be repeats of the unacceptable defeat by Georgia. This situation has been brewing for some time. The system is not working. The whole thing needs to be wiped clean. Sadly, I know it won’t happen” – Warburton
Last Updated: 23/11/22 2:07pm
Sam Warburton has spoken about his fears for the future of Welsh rugby
Former Wales and British and Irish Lions captain Sam Warburton has shared his thoughts and fears for the future of Welsh rugby, saying it needs the “biggest reform in history.”
Writing for The Times on Wednesday, Warburton spoke in the wake of Wales’ embarrassing 13-12 defeat to Georgia in Cardiff – a first loss to Los Lelos.
The loss meant Wales have suffered defeats at home to Italy and Georgia in the same year, while also having lost to Ireland, England, France, South Africa (twice) and New Zealand in 2022.
Indeed, their only wins have come against Scotland, Argentina and a much-changed South Africa in the second of their three-Test July series, live on Sky Sports.
The poor year under head coach Wayne Pivac, which saw them finish fifth in the Six Nations, also comes after a 2020 season which saw them lose seven of 10 Tests, beating only Italy (twice) and Georgia, finishing fifth in the Six Nations as well.
“The game in Wales needs the biggest reform in its history if there are not to be repeats of the unacceptable defeat by Georgia last Saturday,” Warburton said.
Wales have lost at home to Italy and Georgia in Cardiff in 2022
“This situation has been brewing for some time both on and off the field. The system is just not working. The whole thing needs to be wiped clean and a fresh start made. Sadly, I know it won’t happen. I know I will say these things and we will be in the same situation in 12 months.
“I genuinely want the best for Welsh rugby. I am a Cardiff boy but if the Scarlets ended up winning the European Cup I would be over the moon. It would be amazing for Welsh rugby. I want everyone in Wales to succeed.
“I would never let any bias towards Cardiff hinder my decision-making and that, unfortunately, is one of the problems in Welsh rugby: there is too much parochialism.
“And the amateur game still has way too much say. Of the 12 directors on the Welsh Rugby Union’s board, there are eight community members. That is like having eight people on the board of a company that are contributing to just one part of the business. It’s just way too many.
Warburton won two Six Nations titles with Wales in 2012 and 2013
“There should be one community member on that board. The community game is hugely important, of course it is, and most of the people involved are well-intentioned, but it should not have eight representatives on the board of a company with a turnover of £100m. It is farcical.
“It is a governance structure that is stuck in the Stone Age. Unless that changes, very little else will change.”
‘It’s such a mess…I really do fear for Wales over the next five years’
In addition to problems in governance, Warburton pointed out how player pathways, funding disputes between the four regions – Cardiff, Dragons, Ospreys, Scarlets – and the WRU, and lack of playing depth at senior level also point to a bleak future.
Only twice in the professional era (1995, 2010) have Wales had a worst winning percentage than this year
He added: “It is such a mess. There is little trust on either side. I don’t think the WRU trust the regions with their money and then the regions don’t want to be owned by the WRU because their governance is so old fashioned and they do not trust their decisions.
Wales coach Wayne Pivac is under pressure after a run of just three wins in 11 games in 2022
“I really do fear for Wales in the next five years. They are simply not going to have the pool of players to compete, especially once the core of experienced players retire.”
Warburton says he ‘fears for Wales over the next five years’
Calls for ‘a brutally honest review’
Speaking as a pundit on Amazon Prime post-Wales’ defeat to Georgia, Warburton pondered “underlying issues” and questioned “why aren’t the players motivated and desperate?”
The 34-year-old, who picked up 74 caps for Wales between 2009 and 2017 before retiring injured, says drastic change needs to occur, and it needs to start with an immediate review.
Warburton was a coach with Wales under Pivac between November 2019 and October 2020, before stepping away
“There needs to be a very honest review now. If I was in charge at the WRU – and believe me, I am not touting for a job – I would be going around to speak to everyone in the Wales set-up and at the regions,” he said.
“I would be saying: ‘Anonymously, please tell me everything that is good and bad.’ It needs to be brutal across the board to find the answers.”
The former back-row captained the British and Irish Lions on two tours: Australia 2013, New Zealand 2017
Sky Sports has contacted the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) for comment regarding Warburton’s claims and statements
Fashion school students around the world are preparing to enter an industry that’s rapidly changing. There are courses to pass, design prompts to ace, runway shows to prep for and professional connections to make. In our series, “Fashion School Diaries,” those students give us a firsthand look into their day-to-day lives. Here, we meet Francesca Bornancini, a 2022 Fashion Institute of Technology graduate.
Ask most fashion students, and they’ll tell you their biggest dream is to see others wearing their work. Usually, it’ll take a while for that to happen — but this dream came true for recent Fashion Institute of Technology graduate Francesca Bornancini a lot faster than anticipated.
Her senior spring semester, Bornancini submitted her designs to a contest at FIT sponsored by Macy‘s, which would award one winner the chance to collaborate with the retailer on a capsule collection to be sold in stores. She advanced first to the top 15, then top five and eventually was declared the winner at FIT’s 2022 Future of Fashion runway show last May.
Fast-forward to October, and Bornancini was able to see her vision on the rack at Macy’s storied flagship in New York’s Herald Square, as well as at the Aventura mall outside Miami, her hometown, featuring custom FIT x Macy’s tag. Oh, and she secured a full-time job with the retailer.
Photo: Courtesy of Francesca Bornancini
Bornancini, who’s family is from Argentina, always dreamed of becoming a designer — so, when it came time to apply to college, she knew FIT would be a good fit.
“It has a good reputation for fashion,” she says. “It also offered a rigorous curriculum that would push me to find my own design aesthetic.”
Despite the distance from Miami, Bornancini leaned into a Florida-inspired visual language — which she describes as “commercial,” “Miami-style” and “resort” — while at school. She always wanted to create “something seasonless, that you can interchange with other pieces in your wardrobe, and also had commercial appeal,” she says, which has translated into lightweight fabrics like linens and cottons, as well as more minimal silhouettes.
Photo: Courtesy of Francesca Bornancini
According to Bornancini, one of the most valuable aspects of her time at FIT was the encouragement to get involved in the industry. “They offer opportunities to volunteer at New York Fashion Week, so I did a couple of those,” she says. “Senior year, they make you take an internship, so I interned at LoveShackFancy.”
She also cites her thesis professor, Nicole Benefield, as a big source of inspiration: “She has her own brand and knows exactly how the fashion industry is always evolving… She also helped me find my design aesthetic more concisely.” In fact, it was Benefield herself who urged her thesis students to enter the Macy’s competition.
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Photo: Courtesy of Francesca Bornancini
In preparing for the competition that got her on the retail floor fresh out of college, Bornancini knew the pieces would have to be appropriate for everyday-wear.
“I made timeless pieces that you can interchange. I also chose a very neutral color palette, which allows you to mix pieces in your wardrobe”. This is consistent to Bornancini’s previous works, which emphasized wearability and sustainability.
The collaboration process with Macy’s started with a runway presentation of Bornancini’s collection at the 2022 Future of Fashion show, where got to walk the runway with her model and her book. Next, she began working with Macy’s to prepare her collection for production.
“That’s when I started talking to the Macy’s production and tech teams. I showed them a tech pack of the measurements and spec sheets. After that were the sample fittings, where I went into the office and saw the first prototype,” Bornacini recalls.
What was unique about the process was how much creative freedom Macy’s gave Bornancini, and how the company treated her the same way they would a seasoned designer. “Macy’s gave us a variety of neat fabrics to choose from. We were invited to visit local vendors in Long Island City… It was just crazy to see how fast everyone worked,” she says. “I was also able to go into design offices, meet the design team and see the process.” But putting the final looks together wasn’t easy, especially for a student who had never created looks on a mass production scale.
“One of the fabrics I chose was too expensive to put into production,” she explains. “This was different than the classroom: In school, you pick whatever fabric you want and make what you want — you’re creating one look — but it was challenging to figure out fabric costs.” However, thanks to Bornacini’s solid design foundation, she was able to quickly find a solution. “We had to change the fabric for the top, and came up with a less expensive option that still matched my mood.”
Following the collaboration, the young graduate’s next big goal was to make a long-lasting impact at Macy’s. “After winning, I stayed in contact with my Macy’s mentor, Talia Blyer. She was like, ‘Would you wanna work for Macy’s?’ And I was like, ‘Yes, I would love to!’ I’m really excited to have gotten the job.” Bornancini currently holds the position of assistant designer for Macy’s private collection, Bar III. The new job is a full circle moment for Bornancini, who said it was “an easy transition; knowing people on the team makes you feel so welcomed.”
See looks from Francesca Bornancini’scapsule collection for Macy’s in the gallery below.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Bob Iger is returning to Walt Disney Co as chief executive less than a year after he retired, a surprise comeback that coincides with the entertainment company’s attempt to boost investor confidence and profits at its streaming media unit.
Iger, 71, who was chief executive for 15 years and retired as chairman last year, has agreed to serve as CEO for two more years effective immediately, Disney said in a statement late on Sunday. He will replace Bob Chapek, who took over as Disney CEO in February 2020 just as the COVID-19 pandemic hit, leading to park closures and restrictions on visitors globally.
Disney shares surged more than 9% in premarket U.S. trading, valuing the company at about $182 billion. The Frankfurt-listed stock jumped as much as 10% in European trading on Monday, set for its best day in almost two years.
“Maybe the old hand on the tiller is what’s required,” said Markets.com analyst Neil Wilson as the company spends billions of dollars to compete with rival Netflix and seeks to revive its share price.
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The stock has sunk more than 40% so far this year, lagging the nearly 7% year-to-date drop in the broader Dow Jones Industrial Average. It lost almost a third of its value while Chapek was at the helm.
“The Board has concluded that as Disney embarks on an increasingly complex period of industry transformation, Bob Iger is uniquely situated to lead the Company through this pivotal period,” Chairwoman Susan Arnold said in the statement.
Disney disappointed investors this month with an earnings report that showed mounting losses at its streaming media unit that includes Disney+. Shares hit a 20-year low the day after the fourth-quarter earnings.
The streaming business lost nearly $1.5 billion in the quarter, more than twice the previous year’s loss, overshadowing subscriber gains. The unit, which competes with Netflix Inc among others, has yet to turn a profit since its 2019 launch. Disney has said it expects Disney+ to become profitable in fiscal 2024.
“I am an optimist, and if I learned one thing from my years at Disney, it is that even in the face of uncertainty – perhaps especially in the face of uncertainty – our employees and Cast Members achieve the impossible,” Iger said in a memo to employees seen by Reuters.
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Some activist investors have mounted pressure on Disney this year, including Third Point, led by billionaire Daniel Loeb.
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In August, Loeb began pushing for changes, including spinning off the ESPN sports television network and accelerating the planned takeover of Hulu from minority-owner Comcast Corp. The investor later tweeted that he better understood ESPN’s value to Disney.
In the days following its lacklustre earnings report, Trian Fund Management LP, co-founded by Nelson Peltz, earlier this month bought more than $800 million worth of Disney stock, according to a WSJ report on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.
Trian’s view is that Iger should not be back in control of the company, it said.
The stake, which is under the 5% disclosure threshold, isn’t as large as Trian would like it to be and will likely grow subject to market conditions.
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The fund is also seeking a seat on Disney’s board as it pushes the entertainment giant to make operational improvements and cut costs, according to the report.
Disney did not respond to a request for comment on Trian.
Freeland acknowledges own privilege in response to criticism over Disney+ comments
Iger exited Disney on a high note as the company led the battle against Netflix in the streaming wars. During his tenure, Disney made several key acquisitions, including Pixar Animation Studios, Marvel Entertainment and 21st Century Fox, and boosted its market capitalization five-fold.
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During his first tenure, Disney’s annualised shareholder returns were more than 14%, well above its rival Comcast and the broader stock market.
During this second tour, Iger has been charged with “setting Disney on a path to renewed growth” and working with the board to identify a successor, the company said.
The leadership change caught employees by surprise, two company sources said.
Shortly after Iger’s return was announced, Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings tweeted: “Ugh. I had been hoping Iger would run for President. He is amazing.”
(Reporting by Lisa Richwine and Dawn Chmielewski; additional reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru and Lucy Raitano in London; Graphics by Vincent Flasseur; Editing by Kenneth Li, Miral Fahmy, Josephine Mason, Anil D’Silva and Bernadette Baum)
Worcester’s debts include £16.1m in Government loans from the Covid Sports Survival plan, over £5.8m to ticket holders, suppliers, businesses and banks connected to the club, £2.1m in unpaid taxes to HMRC, £6.8m in payroll and over £2m to former owners
Last Updated: 21/11/22 1:29pm
A report by administrators has revealed Worcester Warriors’ debts total more than £30m
A detailed report by administrators Begbies Traynor has revealed full Worcester Warriors debts total more than £30m, as the relegated Premiership club continue to seek a new buyer.
Former Worcester CEO Jim O’Toole is in pole position to complete a takeover, with the report sent to the club’s creditors revealing O’Toole and James Sandford’s consortium paid a £500,000 deposit to be able to negotiate exclusively until the end of November.
The report also states that former Warriors owners Jason Whittingham and Colin Goldring claim they are still owed over £2m by the club.
Other findings show that O’Toole and Sandford’s consortium have already invested more than £1m in the club, and paid off a £634,000 loan taken on land at Sixways taken by the previous owners.
WRFC Players Ltd – the company which held the contracts of Worcester Warriors’ players and some staff – was liquidated in the High Court.
WRFC Players Ltd – the company which held the contracts of Worcester Warriors’ players and some staff – was liquidated in the High Court
The winding-up petition heard concerned an unpaid tax bill of approximately £6m, and the result saw the contracts of Worcester’s players immediately terminated.
Worcester then had their suspension from the rest of the Gallagher Premiership season and enforced relegation to the Championship confirmed by the RFU.
Former owners Goldring and Whittingham were also disqualified as company directors for 12 months following a court hearing in Cardiff in October for failing to file accounts for the financial year to 28 February 2021.
In the latest report, Begbies Traynor confirm the club owe the Government £16.1m in loans from the Covid Sports Survival plan, and still owe £2.1m in unpaid taxes to HMRC.
Worcester and Wasps both entered administration and were relegated from the Premiership within a fortnight of each other
Ticket holders, suppliers, businesses and banks connected to the club are also owed more than £5.8m, while WRFC Players Ltd owed £6.8m prior to being wound up.
The administrators have also confirmed that even if the entirety of Worcester’s remaining assets were sold, the prospective funds raised would not be enough to pay off the existing debts.
Joint-administrator Palmer said in the report that money owed to the HMRC is “highly likely” to be repaid, while the debt owed to the Government would be taken on by a future buyer.
Jason David Frank, who played the Green Power Ranger Tommy Oliver on the 1990s children’s series “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers,” has died. He was 49.
Justine Hunt, Frank’s manager, said in a statement Sunday that Frank passed away. She did not name the cause of death or say when he died, but asked for “privacy of his family and friends during this horrible time as we come to terms with the loss of such a wonderful human being.”
Walter Emmanuel Jones, the original Black Power Ranger who co-starred with Frank in “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers,” wrote on Instagram, that he couldn’t believe it. “My heart is sad to have lost another member of our special family,” wrote Jones. Thuy Trang, who played the original Yellow Power Ranger, died in a car accident in 2001 at age 27.
‘Power Rangers’ cast set a world record while filming movie stunt
“Mighty Morphin Power Rangers,” about five teenagers deputized to save Earth from the evil, debuted on Fox in 1993 and went on to become a pop-culture phenomenon. Early in the first season, Frank’s Tommy Oliver was first seen as a villain, brainwashed by the evil Rita Repulsa. But soon after, he was inducted in the group as the Green Ranger and became one of the most popular characters on the show.
Though his role wasn’t intended to be permanent, Frank was later brought back as the White Ranger and the leader of the team. Across spinoff TV series, Frank’s Tommy Oliver returned as other rangers, as well, including Red Zeo Ranger, the Red Turbo Ranger and the Black Dino Ranger. He also played him in the films “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie” and “Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie,” and made a cameo in the 2017 reboot “Power Rangers.”
A practitioner of martial arts, Frank fought in several mixed martial arts bouts in 2009 and 2010.
TMZ earlier reported that Frank’s second wife, Tammie Frank, filed for divorce from him in August. Frank is survived by four children; one from his marriage with Tammie Frank and three from his first marriage to Shawna Frank.
Australia captain James Tedesco put in a player-of-the-match performance to help the Kangaroos win their third men’s World Cup in a row and deny first-time finalists Samoa the chance of making history at Old Trafford
By Marc Bazeley at Old Trafford
Last Updated: 19/11/22 5:51pm
James Tedesco crossed twice as Australia kept their hold on the Rugby League World Cup
Skipper James Tedesco led the way with a player-of-the-match display as Australia broke Samoa’s hearts and retained the men’s Rugby League World Cup with a 30-10 victory in the final at Old Trafford.
The first-time finalists appeared to be in the ascendancy at the start of the contest, but tries from Latrell Mitchell, full-back Tedesco and Liam Martin helped ensure it was the reigning champions who went into the break holding a 14-0 lead.
The Kangaroos were dealt a blow seven minutes into the second half when Angus Crichton was sin-binned for foul play which saw Samoa hooker Chanel Harris-Tavita forced to leave the field with a head injury in his last game before retiring.
Despite being down to 12 men, Australia pushed further ahead through a try from Cameron Murray and although Brian To’o’s converted score briefly raised hopes of a fightback for Samoa, full-back Tedesco crossed again with 12 minutes to go followed by Mitchell putting the seal on a third World Cup triumph in a row with his second.
England captain Tom Halliwell, who plays for Leeds Rhinos in the Wheelchair Super League, was sent a congratulatory message by Rhinos icon Rob Burrow after playing a starring role in the final; France head coach Sylvain Crismanovich criticised a lack of showering facilities for players
By Marc Bazeley at Manchester Central
Last Updated: 19/11/22 12:02am
Tom Halliwell celebrates with the World Cup after guiding England to victory over France in the final
Tom Halliwell was overcome with emotion after his hero Rob Burrow congratulated him on winning the Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup.
The England captain spoke in the build-up to Friday’s 28-24 win over France in the final about how honoured he was to be wearing the No 7 shirt as Burrow had during his stellar career with Betfred Super League side Leeds Rhinos.
Burrow posted his congratulations to Halliwell, who scored the game-clinching try two minutes from time in England’s win over France, on his Twitter account after the final and the Rhinos wheelchair star was overwhelmed to generate such a reaction.
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“It’s special,” Halliwell said. “My try was sort of recreating his from the [2011 Super League] Grand Final, except his was 40 metres out and mine was probably four.
“Those are such kind words and it means a lot, but I can’t rest now. I’ve still got work hard and this is just the beginning for wheelchair rugby league, and I’m happy to be a part of it.
“I’m very grateful to be a part of this sport, it’s amazing and can’t wait to see what it can grow into.
“I’m probably forever in debt to rugby league and wheelchair rugby league has given me a platform to be able to play with family and friends.”
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After winning the Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup, England’s Tom Halliwell and Seb Bechara reflected on the result and atmosphere at the game against France
After winning the Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup, England’s Tom Halliwell and Seb Bechara reflected on the result and atmosphere at the game against France
England had lost the last two wheelchair World Cup finals against France, with the 2017 one seeing their rivals snatch victory with a try on the final play of the game.
This time, however, it was the host nation who won a see-saw contest in which they were 14-12 down at half-time before seizing the initiative after the break.
“I’ve learnt loads of amazing lessons along the way and probably playing France in tight games has been the biggest lesson, so thanks to them,” England head coach Tom Coyd said.
“I said ‘believe in yourselves’ [at half-time] because I thought we were playing within ourselves. Our defence was so solid, we were just a little bit scared of making a mistake. I said to them believe in themselves and they went out and did that.”
Tom Halliwell’s late try sealed victory for England over France
Attention will soon turn to the next Rugby League World Cup in France in just three years’ time, with the aim being to build on the exposure the wheelchair version of the sport has enjoyed being played alongside the men’s and women’s running game competitions.
Halliwell is optimistic it is only going to keep growing in the build-up to the 2025 tournament, but for now, just wants to enjoy the moment of skippering England to glory on the sport’s biggest stage.
“It’s probably the best feeling in the world, lifting it with these players and staff,” Halliwell said.
“We’ve been working so hard for the past five years to be able to get to this point and it’s so good knowing all this hard work has paid off.”
Tom Halliwell lifts the trophy after victory in the World Cup final
Crismanovich criticises lack of showering facilities
The wheelchair World Cup has been widely acclaimed for elevating the sport to a new level and for its inclusiveness, with the sport allowing male and female disabled and non-disabled athletes to compete on an even playing field.
But while France head coach Sylvain Crismanovich felt the action on the pitch brought many positives over the past three weeks, he believes there was still some areas behind the scenes where work needs to be done.
Crismanovich was particularly upset about the lack of showering facilities for the players at the venue for the final, Manchester Central.
“There have been a whole load of positives in front of the cameras, but behind the cameras, I feel there have been some oversights in this tournament,” Crismanovich said.
Reigning champions France were edged out by England in the final this time around
“There has been no discrimination between teams, but tonight we haven’t got any showers.
“All of the players played, but had no showering facilities and I don’t think the women or the men would have stood to have that.”
On the game itself, Crismanovich felt the outcome could have gone either way.
“It was a close game throughout and there was no point we felt we were in command,” Crismanovich said. “It was back and forth the whole way through, so it was a close game.”
Last month’s outrage over Netflix’s fictional series The Crown reportedly had execs at the streaming giant a bit “rattled,” to the point where they planned to postpone the docuseries until sometime in the new year.
Season 5 of ‘The Crown’ receives mixed reviews
However, it now looks like the documentary will be out before the end of the year.
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The Crown, a fictionalized drama that follows the sometimes-true, sometimes-exaggerated history of the British Royal Family, raised eyebrows and ire amongst both the public and some of the show’s real-life subjects, after trailers for Season 5 allegedly painted a season full of invention and insensitivity.
Former British Prime Minister John Major is one of those who addressed the issue, saying The Crown’s portrayal of the then-Prince Charles trying to recruit him in a scheme to dethrone the queen was “malicious” and “a barrel-load of nonsense.”
A spokeswoman for The Crown told the BBC: “The Crown has always been presented as a drama based on historical events. Series five is a fictional dramatization, imagining what could have happened behind closed doors during a significant decade for the royal family—one that has already been scrutinised and well-documented by journalists, biographers and historians.”
The release of the docuseries will kick-start a busy season for the Duke and Duchess. Last month it was announced that Harry’s memoir, Spare, will be released on Jan. 10 – almost exactly three years to the day since he and Meghan announced they were stepping back from their duties as working members of the Royal Family.
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Prince Harry’s new memoir being released in January 2023
When Harry’s autobiography was first announced in July 2021, the prince said it would be “firsthand account of my life that’s accurate and wholly truthful” — perhaps a dig at the British press, which has hounded him his entire life, and now his wife too, ever since their marriage. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have been at odds with tabloids reporting on their personal lives, even going to court over allegations of breached privacy.
The book has been billed as a tell-all and has been the subject of immense speculation, much like the docuseries. It is expected to cover the prince’s childhood to the present day, including his time serving in Afghanistan with the British military and his current life as a husband and father.
Harry’s memoir has already been delayed once, and much has changed since it was first announced. During that time, Harry’s grandmother Queen Elizabeth II died and his father is now King of the Commonwealth.
The book’s delay led to rumours that Harry was hesitating to say too much about the Royal Family, or was perhaps revising the narrative around Queen Elizabeth II. He has spoken of being estranged from his brother, William, although the siblings and their wives appeared in public together during the mourning period following the queen’s death.
“With its raw, unflinching honesty, Spare is a landmark publication full of insight, revelation, self-examination, and hard-won wisdom about the eternal power of love over grief,” the publisher wrote in a press release.
Spare will be released in 16 languages worldwide accompanied by an audiobook narrated by Prince Harry himself.
England’s World Cup came to an end in the semi-finals as they were beaten 27-26 by Samoa at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday thanks to a drop goal from Stephen Crichton in golden-point extra-time
Last Updated: 14/11/22 4:05pm
George Williams opened up on how Stephen Crichton’s game-winning drop goal for Samoa will stay with him for a long time
George Williams laid bare the heartbreak he and his team-mates experienced as Stephen Crichton landed the game-winning drop goal in England’s Rugby League World Cup semi-final defeat to Samoa.
The host nation had managed to send the contest into golden point extra-time through Herbie Farnworth’s late converted try following an out-of-sorts showing against the team they beat 60-6 in the opening match of Group A four weeks earlier.
But their hopes of reaching the final were dashed when Crichton kicked a one-pointer three minutes into the extra period to seal a 27-26 win and put Samoa through to face Australia at Old Trafford, with scrum-half Williams revealing that will be on his mind until the next World Cup in France in 2025.
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“That will probably sit with us, especially me, for three years, until the next World Cup,” Williams, who will be 31 when rugby league’s next global gathering comes around, said.
“That’s the heartbreaking thing, some people will never play in a World Cup again and we’ll never have this certain group together again, so that’s why it hurts so much.
“It was pretty heartbreaking watching that kick go over. It felt like it was a nightmare, really – it felt it was going over forever, it went that slow.
“We probably got what we deserved, we’re way better than we showed.”
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Shaun Wane and Sam Tomkins react to England’s 26-27 semi-final loss to Samoa in the Rugby League World Cup.
Shaun Wane and Sam Tomkins react to England’s 26-27 semi-final loss to Samoa in the Rugby League World Cup.
England had breezed through the tournament up to that point, running in a total of 242 points and conceding just 34 after finishing top of their group unbeaten and overwhelming Papua New Guinea 46-6 in the quarter-finals.
Group A opponents Samoa had improved since that first meeting though and while England head coach Shaun Wane felt his side performed below the standards they had set for themselves during the World Cup, he was quick to acknowledge the display from the Pacific Islanders.
“We have to be better, no question,” Wane said. “It wasn’t England standard, I won’t accept it, and neither will the players – they’re hurting.
“I knew it would be a different challenge against Samoa. They had too many good players and they proved they were better, but I can’t, for one minute, doubt my players’ efforts.
Shaun Wane felt England’s showing was below the standards they have set for themselves
“They tried hard and they are absolutely devastated, as is every member of staff. But to make any excuses would be unfair to Samoa, they were better than us.”
Having secured their place in the final for the first time and become only the sixth team in the World Cup’s history to reach the tournament decider, Samoa’s side packed with NRL and Betfred Super League talent have an opportunity to make even more history by lifting the Paul Barriere Trophy.
To do that though, they have to overcome reigning champions and 11-time winners Australia – 16-14 victors over New Zealand in the other semi-final – and while England captain Sam Tomkins sees the Kangaroos as favourites, he is in no doubt it would be good for the sport as a whole for Samoa to go all the way.
“It would be brilliant,” Tomkins said. “Watching the other semi-final between New Zealand and Australia, it’s probably the best game of rugby I’ve seen in a long, long time.
Samoa are aiming to make more history in the World Cup final
“Australia will probably go into the final as favourites and deservedly so.
“But I think what Tonga and Samoa have done in recent years, with players wanting to play for their homeland rather than the bigger nations, has really opened up international rugby and I think it can only be a positive.”
New Zealand win 34-31 to claim the Rugby World Cup for a sixth time and end England’s 30-match winning streak; Lydia Thompson sent off for the Red Roses during the first half of an incredible final in Auckland
Last Updated: 12/11/22 11:04am
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Former England international Vicky Fleetwood says that England would have ‘absolutely’ won the Rugby World Cup final if Lydia Thompson had not been shown a red card.
Former England international Vicky Fleetwood says that England would have ‘absolutely’ won the Rugby World Cup final if Lydia Thompson had not been shown a red card.
England captain Sarah Hunter believes the Red Roses can be proud of their World Cup performance and insists Lydia Thompson’s red card cannot be solely blamed for their “cruel” defeat to New Zealand in the final.
The Red Roses saw their 30-match winning streak ended in an epic contest against the tournament hosts and defending champions, as they were beaten 34-31 in front of a sell-out crowd at Eden Park.
England spent more than an hour with 14 players after Thompson was sent off for a reckless tackle, although Simon Middleton’s side led for large spells before being beaten by the Black Ferns in a World Cup final for a fifth time.
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2003 Rugby World Cup winner Will Greenwood says the Rugby World Cup ‘has transcended an 80-minute game’ and believes the Red Roses will sell Twickenham out in the next few years.
2003 Rugby World Cup winner Will Greenwood says the Rugby World Cup ‘has transcended an 80-minute game’ and believes the Red Roses will sell Twickenham out in the next few years.
“I’m gutted,” Hunter said. “I’m so proud of the team, we came out fighting. We had our backs against the wall for 60 minutes but we never gave up.
“One result doesn’t define the squad that we are, the people we are. Hopefully we have inspired the next generation back home and given themselves something to be proud of.
“Sport is cruel. Credit to New Zealand, they found a way and they go home as deserved champions. We left no stone unturned, we left everything on the pitch. We are hurting.”
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1994 Rugby World Cup winner Giselle Mather says the Red Roses ‘have given everything for the cause’ during their Rugby World Cup final defeat.
1994 Rugby World Cup winner Giselle Mather says the Red Roses ‘have given everything for the cause’ during their Rugby World Cup final defeat.
How did the red card impact England?
England made the dream start and were 14-0 ahead after early tries from Ellie Kildunne and Amy Cokayne, only for New Zealand to be gifted a way back into the game in the 18th minute with Thompson’s dismissal.
“It [the red card] didn’t help,” Middleton admitted. “It definitely affected how the game was played. You look at the points they scored immediately down the side – it’s difficult to defend. We had to adapt but when you’ve got 14 and cover one area then it weakens you in another.
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“Good teams find you out and they found us out a little bit, so it made a tough game a whole lot tougher, but we took it down to the last play and the game was in the balance when the hooter had gone.
“You cannot overstate how proud I am and the rest of the staff are of the players and how proud of they should be of themselves. To get that close, with so many challenges that went on through the game, was immense and it shows what the squad is all about.”
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Former England international Vicky Fleetwood says that England’s players will be heart-broken by their defeat in the World Cup final.
Former England international Vicky Fleetwood says that England’s players will be heart-broken by their defeat in the World Cup final.
The Red Roses battled valiantly and held a narrow two-point advantage until Ayesha Leti-I’iga scored the winning try nine minutes from time, with Hunter adamant that Thompson has the full backing of her England teammates.
“Lydia’s hurting, she’s such a great person, a great player and in moments like this we need to come around her,” Hunter said. “There’s one thing for sure – and that wasn’t the reason we lost the game.
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“We are a team that is as one and we won’t point any fingers or identify a single person on the end result. We’ve got her back, we’ll look after her, we’ll put an arm around her and make sure she’s alright.
“In games, people get sent-off and teams still win. I don’t think it necessarily defined the outcome. It makes it harder, but it’s not the sole reason why we were not on the end of the result we wanted this evening.”
Positives to take for Red Roses?
Middleton said in the build-up to the World Cup that anything less than a win for England would be a disappointment, but the head coach said afterwards he has seen progress from his side during the tournament.
England narrowly missed out on World Cup victory in New Zealand
“That’s the overwhelming feeling, how proud I am and we are of the players, Middleton said “They gave absolutely everything. Not just, tonight but for 50, 51 days. They’ve given nothing but their absolute best every single day.”
“In terms of our goals, it is [disappointing not to win]. Talk to any of the players and they’ll say exactly the same. But we won on massive fronts.
“We wanted to leave these shores a better team than we came. We did 100 per cent. We’ve lost tonight but won massively over the last 51 days.”
Jack van Poortvliet adds that England will be tuning in to support the Red Roses as they face New Zealand in the World Cup Final on Saturday morning.
By Press Association
Last Updated: 11/11/22 2:17pm
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England’s men’s rugby team lead the good luck messages for the Red Roses who take on New Zealand in the World Cup Final at Eden Park.
England’s men’s rugby team lead the good luck messages for the Red Roses who take on New Zealand in the World Cup Final at Eden Park.
Jack van Poortvliet insists England aim to play with freedom when they evoke the spirit of their summer tour to Australia to revive their autumn.
Eddie Jones’ side host Japan at Twickenham on Saturday with the goal of delivering an immediate response after falling 30-29 to Argentina, their first loss to the Pumas since 2009.
Knowing they are on the back foot with New Zealand and South Africa next up in the Autumn Nations Series, they have used their experiences Down Under in July as inspiration.
The tour ended with a 2-1 series victory but only once England had recovered from collapsing to defeat in the opener by producing an emphatic high-octane victory in Brisbane that had shades of the 2019 World Cup.
Van Poortvliet, the 21-year-old rookie who has replaced Leicester team-mate Ben Youngs at scrum-half, believes a fast start will help address any hesitancy.
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Scrum-half Jack van Poortvliet says the men’s rugby team are ‘incredibly proud’ of the Red Roses and that they will be tuning in to watch as they take on New Zealand in the World Cup Final.
Scrum-half Jack van Poortvliet says the men’s rugby team are ‘incredibly proud’ of the Red Roses and that they will be tuning in to watch as they take on New Zealand in the World Cup Final.
“There has been an appreciation of the common things in both first Tests – the one against Argentina last weekend and the one against Australia. We have spoken about them and addressed them,” Van Poortvliet said.
“We have a clear focus. We want to free ourselves up, play with real excitement and make sure we are not overthinking things. We want to be excited by the challenge.
“To free yourself up you have got to be on the front foot and our challenge is how can we get on the front foot early.
“It’s a mindset and for us we want to hit the ground running and bring that real physicality and aggression.”
England’s attack failed to ignite against Argentina, a recurring shortcoming that is in urgent need of fixing with the World Cup only 12 Tests away.
Attack coach Martin Gleeson insists the greatest concern was not finishing off the chances created and rejected the notion that players operate in a straitjacket of pre-programmed instructions.
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Scrum-half Jack van Poortvliet says England’s defeat against Argentina didn’t ‘tarnish’ his debut.
Scrum-half Jack van Poortvliet says England’s defeat against Argentina didn’t ‘tarnish’ his debut.
“We want to attack better this week and be a little more direct, and then when the opportunities come out wide we want to take them,” Gleeson said.
“The pleasing thing is we are getting in those areas and we are causing teams problems. It’s just that last little bit of the puzzle that we’re working on.
“We’re working hard on that and I don’t think we’re too far away. The more the players play together and the more experienced they are, the better we will get.
“No one ever speaks about errors here, no one ever speaks about making mistakes. We want to be as aggressive as we can with our attack. No one says otherwise, there’s a bit of a preconception about that.
“We want the boys to play what they see and be as aggressive and full of intent as they can be.
“Of course they can go off script. We want to play a certain way, which is what we’re building from the summer, but if players see something they’ve got to take it – we want to take it.”
A jury ordered Academy Award-winning filmmaker Paul Haggis Thursday to pay at least $7.5 million to a woman who accused him of rape in one of several #MeToo-era cases that have put Hollywood notables’ behavior on trial this fall. The jury also plans to award additional punitive damages.
Veering from sex to red-carpet socializing to Scientology, the civil court trial pitted Haggis, known for writing best picture Oscar winners “Million Dollar Baby” and “Crash,” against Haleigh Breest, a publicist who met him while working at movie premieres in the early 2010s. After a screening afterparty in January 2013, he offered her a lift home and invited her to his New York apartment for a drink.
After hugging her lawyers, Breest said she was “very grateful” for the verdict as she left court. Haggis declined to comment.
He sat stock-still as the verdict was read, then turned to look at his three adult daughters in the courtroom audience. One had been crying on a sister’s shoulder.
Breest, 36, said Haggis then subjected her to unwanted advances and ultimately compelled her to perform oral sex and raped her despite her entreaties to stop. Haggis, 69, said the publicist was flirtatious and, while sometimes seeming “conflicted,” initiated kisses and oral sex in an entirely consensual interaction. He said he couldn’t recall whether they had intercourse.
Jurors sided with Breest, who said she suffered psychological and professional consequences from her encounter with Haggis. She sued in late 2017.
“I thought I was getting a ride home. I agreed to have a drink. What happened never should have happened. And it had nothing to do with me, and everything to do with him and his actions,” she told jurors last month.
While awarding her $7.5 million to compensate for suffering, the jury concluded that punitive damages should also be awarded. Jurors return Monday for more court proceedings to help them decide that amount.
The verdict came weeks after another civil jury, in the federal courthouse next door, decided that Kevin Spacey didn’t sexually abuse fellow actor and then-teenager Anthony Rapp in 1986. Meanwhile, “That ’70s Show” actor Danny Masterson and former movie magnate Harvey Weinstein are on trial, separately, on criminal rape charges in Los Angeles. Both deny the allegations, and Weinstein is appealing a conviction in New York.
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Harvey Weinstein extradited to California to face further sexual assault charges
All four cases followed the #MeToo upwelling of denunciations, disclosures and demands for accountability about sexual misconduct, triggered by October 2017 news reports on decades of allegations about Weinstein.
Breest, in particular, said she decided to sue Haggis because his public condemnations of Weinstein infuriated her: “This man raped me, and he is presenting himself as a champion of women to the world,” she recalled thinking.
Four other women also testified that they experienced forceful, unwelcome passes — and in one case, rape — by Haggis in separate encounters going back to 1996. None of the four took legal action.
“The behavior showed me that he was somebody who was never going to stop,” one woman testified, saying that Haggis repeatedly tried to kiss her against her will and even followed her into and out of a taxi to her apartment in Toronto in 2015. His lawyers sought to assail the accusers’ credibility.
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The Associated Press generally does not identify people who say they have been sexually assaulted unless they come forward publicly, as Breest has done.
Haggis denied all of the allegations. He told jurors the accusations left him shaken.
“I’m scared because I don’t know why women, why anyone, would lie about things like this,” he said. His defense, meanwhile, introduced jurors to several women — including ex-wife and former longtime “Dallas” cast member Deborah Rennard — who said the screenwriter-director took it in stride when they rebuffed his romantic or sexual overtures.
During three weeks of testimony, the trial scrutinized text messages that Breest sent to friends about what happened with Haggis, emails between them before and after the night in question, and some differences between their testimony and what they said in early court papers.
The two sides debated whether Haggis was physically capable of carrying out the alleged attack eight weeks after a spinal surgery. Psychology experts offered dueling perspectives about what one called widespread misconceptions about rape victims’ behavior, such as assumptions that victims would have no subsequent contact with their attackers.
And jurors heard extensive testimony about the Church of Scientology, the religion founded by science fiction and fantasy author L. Ron Hubbard in the 1950s. Haggis was an adherent for decades before publicly renouncing, and denouncing, Scientology in 2009.
Through testimony from Haggis and other ex-members, his defense argued that the church set out to discredit him and might have had something to do with the lawsuit.
No witnesses said they knew that Haggis’ accusers or Breest’s lawyers had Scientology ties, and his lawyers acknowledged that Breest herself does not. Still, Haggis lawyer Priya Chaudhry sought to persuade jurors that there were “the footprints, though maybe not the fingerprints, of Scientology’s involvement here.”
The church said in a statement that it has no involvement in the matter, arguing that Haggis is trying to shame his accusers with an “absurd and patently false” claim. Breest’s lawyers have called it “a shameful and unsupported conspiracy theory.”
The Canadian-born Haggis got his start as a TV writer, eventually penning episodes of such well-known 1980s series as “Diff’rent Strokes” and “Thirtysomething.” He broke into movies with a splash with “Million Dollar Baby” and “Crash,” which he also directed and co-produced. Each film won the Academy Award for best picture, for 2004 and 2005 respectively, and Haggis also won a screenwriting Oscar for “Crash.”
His other credits include the Oscar-nominated screenplay for “Letters From Iwo Jima” and the screenplays for the James Bond movies “Casino Royale” and “Quantum of Solace.”
A woman has come forward to launch a lawsuit against Hollywood legend Warren Beatty, accusing the actor of grooming her when she was only 14 years old, and coercing her into sex.
Kristina Charlotte Hirsch filed the lawsuit on monday in Los Angeles Superior Court under a 2019 California law that opened up a three-year “lookback window” for victims of child sexual abuse to sue their abusers regardless of the statute of limitations. The window expires on Dec. 31.
The lawsuit doesn’t cite Beatty by name, instead referring to him as Defendant Doe, but the abuser is described as having portrayed Clyde in Bonnie and Clyde, a role that earned Beatty a Best Actor nomination at the Academy Awards.
So far, there has been no public comment on the lawsuit by Beatty, 85, or his lawyer.
Hirsch, then 14, alleges that Beatty, then 35, met her on a movie set where he was filming, and paid “undue attention” to her.
The defendant “commented repeatedly on her looks, gave her his phone number, and instructed her to call him,” the lawsuit reads.
Hirsch was initially “thrilled by the attention” of a Hollywood actor and accepted Beatty’s invitation to visit his hotel room, according to the lawsuit — an invitation that Betty would extend again and again.
“Over the course of 1973, Defendant Doe called the Plaintiff on numerous occasions and summoned the teenager to the hotel where he was living to spend time with him,” the lawsuit reads.
The suit continues that Beatty would take Hirsch on car rides, offered to help her with homework, and on multiple occasions “spoke to Plaintiff about losing her virginity.”
As their relationship progressed, the lawsuit says that Beatty used his position “as an adult and a Hollywood movie star,” to coerce her into sexual acts with him. The sexual abuse occurred on numerous occasions until late 1973 and included oral sex, simulated sex and, “finally coerced sexual intercourse with the minor child,” the lawsuit claims.
Hirsch is suing Beatty on charges of sexual battery, sexual assault and harassment of a child and is seeking damages for emotional, physical and psychological distress.
The lawsuit states that Hirsch was a victim of “predatory grooming,” and “believed she was involved in a romantic relationship with a movie star.”
In the aftermath of the childhood sexual abuse, Hirsch finds it difficult to interact with people, especially those in positions of authority, as she struggles with “trust and control,” the lawsuit states.
Hirsch has requested a jury trial and is seeking compensation for attorney fees in addition to damages. She is being represented by Jeff Anderson & Associates, a firm that has handled child sex abuse cases against the Catholic Church and the Boy Scouts of America.
Experts discuss impact of sexual abuse in children
The fixture will be held at the home of the Penrith Panthers, the BlueBet Stadium, on Saturday February 18, with kick-off at 7am (GMT)
Last Updated: 09/11/22 5:52pm
Super League champions St Helens will travel to Australia to take on NRL champions Penrith Panthers in the World Club Challenge
Super League champions St Helens will travel to Australia to face NRL champions Penrith Panthers for the World Club Challenge.
The fixture will be held at the home of the Penrith Panthers, the BlueBet Stadium, on Saturday February 18, with kick-off at 7am (GMT).
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Relive how St Helens became the first Super League side to win a record four Grand Finals in a row
Relive how St Helens became the first Super League side to win a record four Grand Finals in a row
It is the first time the World Club Challenge has taken place since 2020 and the eighth time St Helens have been involved in the fixture, with two wins to their name from 2001 and 2007, both against the Brisbane Broncos.
Penrith Panthers have previously appeared twice in the World Club Challenge and have been defeated on both occasions, once to Wigan Warriors in 1991 and Bradford Bulls in 2004.
With St Helens travelling to Australia in early February, their round one fixture against Huddersfield Giants has been postponed until a later date in the season.
The match-up will mark St Helens’ new head coach Paul Wellens’ first competitive fixture and he is “relishing the opportunity” to show his side’s talent down under.
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Paul Wellens is immensely proud to replace Kristian Woolf as the new head coach of St Helens, and says ‘the club is very close to my heart’ after his promotion from assistant coach
Paul Wellens is immensely proud to replace Kristian Woolf as the new head coach of St Helens, and says ‘the club is very close to my heart’ after his promotion from assistant coach
“Both ourselves and Penrith have had unrivalled success in recent years and we are relishing the opportunity to go over to Australia and test ourselves against what is undoubtably a great team,” said Wellens.
“It had been disappointing for us that we’ve been unable to have this contest in last couple of years, but it’s great news not just for both clubs, but for the game as a whole that the best teams in both competitions can once again compete in the World Club Challenge.
“We are obviously motivated by achieving further success and this gives us as a club an early opportunity to do exactly that in 2023, we aim to represent ourselves, the town of St Helens and the Super League competition in the best possible manner.”
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St Helens lift their fourth Grand Final trophy in a row after a 24-12 victory over Leeds Rhinos
St Helens lift their fourth Grand Final trophy in a row after a 24-12 victory over Leeds Rhinos
St Helens R.F.C. chairman Eamonn McManus added: “The 2023 season is the 150th anniversary of our club. The only attainable achievement which has eluded us during our history is to be crowned World Club Champions in Australia.
“Many consider this Penrith Panthers side to be one of, if not the, best side in the history of the NRL. Similarly, St Helens are experiencing an unparalleled period of success in Super League.
“The game in Sydney will represent one of the greatest challenges that St Helens has ever faced. We are really looking forward to meeting it head on.”
Excitement for the game is also felt in the Panthers camp, with their chief executive officer Matt Cameron expressing his excitement at seeing the fixture return to the calendar.
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“On behalf of all at Panthers, we look forward to welcoming St Helens to BlueBet Stadium in February,” said Cameron.
“St Helens have been the benchmark team in the Super League for several years now, which will give the Panthers a great challenge to start the new season.
“The World Club Challenge is an important piece of the rugby league calendar and it’s great to see the fixture return for the first time since 2020.”
Aaron Carter, the singer-rapper who began performing as a child and had hit albums starting in his teen years, was found dead Saturday at his home in Southern California. He was 34.
Representatives for Carter’s family confirmed the singer’s death. They did not provide any immediate further comment.
Carter, the younger brother of Nick Carter of the Backstreet Boys, performed as an opening act for Britney Spears as well as his brother’s boy band, and appeared on the family’s reality series “House of Carters” that aired on E! Entertainment Television.
Deputies responded around 11 a.m. following reports of a medical emergency at the home in Lancaster, said Deputy Alejandra Parra with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
Parra said the deputies found a deceased person at the residence, but she could not immediately confirm it was Carter.
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Carter’s fiance, Melanie Martin, asked for privacy as the family grieves.
“We are still in the process of accepting this unfortunate reality,” Martin said in a statement Saturday. “Your thoughts and prayers are greatly appreciated.”
Carter’s 2000 album, “Aaron’s Party (Come Get It),” sold three million copies and produced hit singles including the title song and “I Want Candy. His videos received regular airplay on Disney and Nickelodeon.
In 2009, Carter appeared on the ABC competition show “Dancing with the Stars,” finishing in fifth place with partner Karina Smirnoff.
Carter’s fifth and final studio album, “LOVE,” was released in 2018.
England face Group D runners-up Papua New Guinea in the quarter-finals of the Rugby League World Cup at the DW Stadium in Wigan on Saturday (kick-off 2.30pm); Shaun Wane’s team qualified for the knock-out stages as Group A winners with three wins from three
Last Updated: 03/11/22 9:08pm
England winger Dom Young is the leading try-scorer so far in this year’s World Cup
We take a look at what is being said and team news as England’s men take on Papua New Guinea in the quarter-finals of the Rugby League World Cup on Saturday (kick-off 2.30pm)…
Young seizing his England opportunity
Dom Young is aiming to carry on where he left off in the group stages as England take on Papua New Guinea in Saturday’s quarter-final.
A further four tries in the first half of the 94-4 win over Greece in Sheffield last Saturday made the 21-year-old the leading try-scorer in the men’s competition with eight so far.
Friday, November 4 – Australia vs Lebanon (Huddersfield, 7.30pm).
Saturday, November 5 – England vs Papua New Guinea (Wigan, 2.30pm), New Zealand vs Fiji (Hull, 7.30pm).
Sunday, November 6 – Tonga vs Samoa (Warrington, 2.30pm).
Young had not played Test rugby prior to the World Cup getting underway, but the Newcastle Knights winger is delighted with the start he has made to life in an England shirt.
“I’m ready to go every week,” Young said. “I didn’t want to be rested so I’m happy I got out there [against Greece].
“I tried leaving it all out on the pitch in each game. I probably couldn’t have expected it to go the way it has but I’m loving every minute of it.”
Young has made such an impression that he has managed to displace England’s record try-scorer Ryan Hall, who took his personal tally to 39 tries in 40 appearances for the national team with a double against the Greeks but was left out of the 19-man squad for the clash with PNG.
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Tommy Makinson is set to fill the other wing berth and Young is aiming to ensure England carry on the form which saw them go through the group stage unbeaten. However, he acknowledges they face a step up in competition.
“We’ve played well each game in the group and it’s taking that into the bigger games, the knock-out games,” Young said. “If we keep doing that and keep building on what we’ve been doing, we can get to that final.
“It’s going to be a big step up…they’re a great team and they’re going to come out firing. We need the fans to come out in Wigan.”
‘PNG have learnt from 2017 defeat’
Saturday’s encounter at the DW Stadium is a repeat of the quarter-final from the 2017 World Cup in Australia, where England were comfortable 36-6 winners over Papua New Guinea.
England were victorious against Papua New Guinea in the 2017 World Cup quarter-finals
However, head coach Stanley Tepend is adamant the Kumuls are a much different proposition to that day in Melbourne.
A 36-0 win over Wales on Monday secured PNG’s passage to the knock-out stages as Group D runners-up and Tepend expects the lessons from five years ago to serve the team well.
“We had targets that we wanted to achieve in the pool stages, and we’ve done that, and the performance really showed how tight we all are off the field,” Tepend said.
“I think we’ve learned from what happened in 2017. The players are now a lot smarter and a lot younger. I think we relied on a few individuals but now it’s more of a team effort and we’ve got better players, I guess, as well.”
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Six of the players in England’s 24-man squad for the tournament were part of the Great Britain and Ireland team which suffered a surprise 28-10 defeat to the Papua New Guineas in Port Moresby in 2019.
John Bateman was one of those and the Wigan Warriors second row is determined to banish the memories of that loss in Saturday’s clash at the stadium where he plays his club rugby.
“It was a hostile situation, in their backyard, but they are a good side,” Bateman said. “You know what you’re getting with them, they come straight and direct and they’re pretty physical.
“They hit pretty hard but there are lads in our team that hit just as hard. It will be a good contest and we’re looking forward to it.”
Team news
Kallum Watkins is back in England’s squad after missing the win over Greece
England welcome captain Sam Tomkins back after he was rested for the win over Greece and Kallum Watkins returns too after missing that match due to concussion protocols. Herbie Farnworth, Michael McIlorum and Elliott Whitehead are back too.
Watson Boas and Sylvester Namo return to Papua New Guinea’s squad from the win over Wales, while McKenzie Yei comes back into contention for the Kumuls too.
England (from): Sam Tomkins (captain), Tommy Makinson, Kallum Watkins, Herbie Farnworth, Jack Welsby, Tom Burgess, Michael McIlorum, Elliott Whitehead, John Bateman, Victor Radley, Dom Young, Morgan Knowles, Matty Lees, Mike Cooper, Chris Hill, Mike McMeeken, Marc Sneyd, Kai Pearce-Paul.
Papua New Guinea (from): Wellington Albert, Jacob Alick, Keven Appo, Watson Boas, Edwin Ipape, Zev John, Alex Johnston, Lachlan Lam, Kyle Laybutt, Nene MacDonald, Rhyse Martin (captain), Sylvester Namo, Jimmy Ngutlik, Justin Olam, Nixon Putt, Daniel Russell, Jeremiah Simbiken, Rodrick Tai, McKenzie Yei.
Ireland take on world champions South Africa in their first fixture of the Autumn Nations Series on Saturday at 5.30pm; Andy Farrell’s team will also face Fiji and Australia at the Aviva Stadium on successive weekends
Last Updated: 02/11/22 11:17am
Ireland start their autumn campaign against South Africa on Saturday
Captain Johnny Sexton says Ireland must keep on evolving during the Autumn Internationals as the next Rugby World Cup comes into focus.
The in-form Irish are preparing to begin their autumn campaign against world champions South Africa, having shot to the top of the global rankings following a historic summer series win in New Zealand.
With the start of the 2023 tournament in France just over 10 months away, fly-half Sexton has credited the Irish coaching staff with increasing competition for places and not allowing established players to slide into their comfort zones.
Head coach Andy Farrell has been training with a squad of 49 in Dublin ahead of Saturday’s showdown with the Springboks, which is preceded by Friday evening’s fixture between an Ireland A team and an All Blacks XV.
Ireland’s Autumn Internationals
Saturday, November 5
Ireland vs South Africa
5.30pm
Saturday, November 12
Ireland vs Fiji
1pm
Saturday, November 19
Ireland vs Australia
8pm
“You’ve got to keep evolving, you’ve got to keep getting better,” Sexton said. “If you stay the same, other teams will pass you out.
“We need to build a real competition for places so that no one can get comfortable and that is exactly what the coaches are doing.
“They’re challenging us in how we play the game, they’re challenging us by putting all these extra fixtures in, with the Emerging Ireland tour, the Maori games, now the New Zealand A game, so all these guys are getting chances to impress the coaches and to play under the coaches, to listen and put what the coaches want out on the pitch.
“There were 50 players at training, and I was thinking to myself 20 of them are going to be left at home for the World Cup.
“And I couldn’t pick who is going to be left at home, there are going to be some good players left out.
“That’s exactly where we want to be and keep cultivating. Those are the lessons we learnt that we’re implementing.”
Ireland approach the autumn following a highly successful summer in New Zealand
Ireland and South Africa are poised to lock horns for the first time in five years before meeting again next September at the World Cup.
While the pool stage fixture in Paris adds an extra dimension to the weekend clash, Sexton insists his attention is almost exclusively on short-term matters.
“I’m just trying to focus on what is straight in front of me,” said the 37-year-old Leinster player.
“I haven’t thought too much about the bigger picture. It’s a driving factor, but it’s not something I think about this week, for example.
“We have spoken about the World Cup of course and have that as the goal so we are always building towards that.
“We don’t refer to it week on week. It is very much focused on South Africa this week.”
“It was really special”: Courtney Winfield-Hill scored three tries as England secured a huge 72-4 victory over Brazil in their Rugby League World Cup opener; Next, they face Canada in a double-header with the men’s team at Wigan
By Megan Wellens
Last Updated: 01/11/22 5:44pm
Courtney Winfield-Hill was in fine form as England got their World Cup campaign under way
England half-back Courtney Winfield-Hill believes her side can build from a “really special” opening victory against Brazil, as they look to go all the way at the Rugby League World Cup.
In a player of the match performance, Winfield-Hill scored a hat-trick in England’s dominant win over Brazil and admitted it was a moment to remember as they walked out to the roaring crowd at Headingley as stands packed with local school children cheered for the home nation.
“It was really special and I think that is something that England rugby league fans do really well,” said Winfield-Hill.
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“Especially here at Headingley, to hear that South Stand drum giving us a really big lift through moments in that game, that was incredibly special.
“It was a big occasion today with the number of people in the crowd and the volume going off.
“It all adds to it and now we have experienced, perhaps we can settle in a little more and just get minds on the game.”
Despite a resounding win, Winfield-Hill believes England have a lot of areas to improve if they are going to secure their goal of winning the World Cup on home soil.
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“Patchy is the word I would use to describe it,” she added.
“We were really good in certain patches then we probably got a bit excited at times and just lost touch with a couple of basics.
“I am sure Craig (Richards) and the coaching staff will get us back on the straight and narrow over the next couple of days.
“Georgia (Roche) and I have only been together at Leeds for a year and it has been clunky at times, there is no denying that for us.
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“But it was also really good today to have some time with Zoe Harris and just connecting a different partnership because we know that throughout this tournament, everybody is going to play a part and there is going to be different combinations at times.”
On Saturday, England will have another special moment as they play in front of a packed-out crowd in a double-header with the men’s team at Wigan, with the Princess of Wales Kate Middleton attending the occasion.
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“We just need to learn to gain momentum through basics. I think we lost it at points there today and we know that comes through discipline,” Winfield-Hill said.
“So, solidifying a few basics will be on the agenda and I am really looking forward to the double-header with the men, who are building some terrific momentum themselves.
“That will be another really good moment to be a part of.”
